


Making promises

by innerfangirl



Series: Sun Clouds and Ravens [3]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Darcy's Drunk, F/M, Family Bonding, Family Dynamics, Fem!Harry, Harry feels, Immortal Harry, Master of Death Harry, Protective Clint, Protective Pepper, Protective Tony, Quirky Harry, Tony Stark Has A Heart
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-02-23
Updated: 2014-02-23
Packaged: 2018-01-13 13:28:52
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,448
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1228144
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/innerfangirl/pseuds/innerfangirl
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Raven has bonding time with the Avengers team. </p><p> </p><p>Natasha grabbed a cookie from the plate and threw it at Clint. "Take a cookie, Hawky." She called. Stark and Bruce did bother to hide their laughter and Clint smirked.</p><p>"You're drunk." He accused. Natasha steadied herself for a minute and shook her head.</p><p>"I am not." She said, only slurring slightly. She wondered if Fury was able to get her back in that restaurant in Prague. They had really good enchiladas. "I want enchiladas."</p>
            </blockquote>





	Making promises

 

**Thor**

 

Thor always thought that Misguardians had strange forms of customs, but was always ready to celebrate them.

It was New Years Eve, a day that Thor had been assured was of big significance in most cultures. Friend Stark had hosted a celebration in the tower, making it small so that Lady Raven may attend. It was only Friends Clint, Bruce, Steve, Tony, and Rodney and Ladies Natasha, Jane, Pepper, and Raven, but it was rather fun.

Friend Tony had turned on all of the speaking boxes on the floor, letting the same reporter speak of a ball dropping. This was also a big deal, though on why anyone would want to watch a ball drop was not yet understood.

Thor believed that they could just drop one of Friend Tony's robot's rubber balls faster and maybe that would start the great game of Catch.

Instead all were crowded around the boxes, clutching glasses excitedly and watching. Lady Raven was standing back, watching the group from the door to the outdoor patio. She was leaning on the glass tiredly and Thor was struck by concern.

He maneuvered out of Lady Jane's hold on his arm, motioning to the window. She nodded, smiling. He beamed back.

They had been working on the "Inside Voice" that apparently All Speak did not cover. It was very difficult to master, but everyone looked so pleased when it was achieved.

"Lady Raven, do you not want to watch this ball drop?" Thor asked once he was over to Raven. She smiled at him and shook her head.

"No, Lord Prince. I am not a fan of the New Year." She said. Thor thought about offering again to have her call him Thor, but figured the move from the very formal "My Lordship" was enough. Besides, the others were still called the names that she had first used besides their efforts.

"Why not, if I may ask?" Thor asked. Raven shrugged, moving outside and Thor followed.

"All will fade. These buildings, these people, even these memories eventually. Even though I love living on this planet, I am older then all on it. The end of a year reminds me of that." Lady Raven said. She sounded sad, but Thor found he could not disagree.

The curse of living centuries was that not everyone else did.

"Why not come to Asguard? You could petition the All Father about extending the life of Friend Stark so that you may never live without him. A companion in long life is a great gift." Thor said. Raven shook her head, staring at the fast moving lights beneath them and the excited noise from behind the door.

"He would still die, while I can not. The world will end in fire and smoke." She gave a slightly laugh. "The world will end and only I shall see it."

"Nothing lives forever." Thor protested.

"Death does, as does Death's master and Companion." Thor paused at that statement. Surely she wasn't saying...? It would explain much, but it was impossible. The Master of Death was just a legend, a tale told to young Asguardian children to get them to eat the vegetables at feasts or share toys.

He had grown up with adults and mothers warning of Death's Master when children did something bad.  _"You had better hope that the Master of Death didn't see that. You know she never forgets bad children's names! You might just wake up a Bilgesnipe one day. You wouldn't want that, would you?"_

Hela had always smirked at the rumors, never confirming or denying the story. Thor had once asked her directly, before Loki had turned away from them and they were all young, and she had just said she was not Death. She had admitted to being a servant of death, never Death itself and not even the main servant, just another one in a line of many to serve her master.

"How?" He managed. She smiled at him.

"Trade secret." She whispered. Lady Raven walked to the edge of the patio and leaned forward, wind coming to play with her loose hair. "Tell Cube not to try the marshmallow thing with Arrow. It won't end well." She murmured. Her words were almost taken by the wind, but somehow he heard her.

He made the note to warn Loki and Friend Clint. They had somehow bonded once Friend Clint had shot Loki in the leg twice and Loki had saved Clint's life once. Thor was just glad that Lady Natasha had accepted Clint's approval of Loki and had not used her methods to welcome him.

Lady Raven had warned that Lady Natasha would have been worse.

Thor hesitated for a moment before speaking. "While most things fade, some last. You have lived far longer, but would you not agree there have been good years? I know that I have met Lady Jane and all of the Avengers and that has been worth the knowing that one day they will die. Humans are interesting creatures, they will adapt to bigger and better things in time; and it is always fascinating to watch them. Would you give that up?" He knew enough about Death from Hela not to think that Lady Raven could allow someone to last forever. It would just cause more problems.

Lady Raven smiled at him. "I shall miss you, Lord Prince. Yet, I think I shall not have to miss you yet." She kissed his cheek as she went back inside and Thor realized that it was the first time she had touched him.

"You're welcome, Lady Raven." He whispered to the wind.

Thor went back inside and watched as the men in the box stopped speaking and started counting, the numbers being shouted by the friends around him. Lady Raven was beside Friend Tony, both of them safely away from the rest but close enough not to notice.

When the numbers got to zero and the ball was on the ground everyone cheered, even Lady Natasha. Jane pulled his face toward her and kissed him, and he temporarily forgot about Lady Raven's problems. It wasn't until she had released him and she went to get them both drinks that he looked at her.

She was pressed close to Friend Tony, a hand on his cheek as he pulled back from a kiss. She smiled at him and he grinned back.

Thor promised to make those smiles last however he could.

* * *

 

**Clint**

 

The air vents above Level T2 had finally gotten rid of the lasers and booby traps.

Clint was pleased. He normally didn't care about them, not wanting to look at Raven and Tony anyway, but it was difficult to get all the way to the office floors to spy on the minions with the floor blocked.

He crawled along the vents, pausing when he smelled something heavenly. He peeked through the vent and saw a plate of spaghetti held up to the vent.

"You can come down, Arrow." Raven called up. Clint hesitated before he smelled brownies too and quickly popped down.

He stood awkwardly for a second. She was sitting on the floor, a table low enough for there not to be chairs necessary. Laeth was resting beside her, and yawned to flash very sharp teeth before staring at him.

"Laeth scares me." Clint blurted, instantly wanting to take it back. Raven smiled and nodded.

"She does that to everyone. Don't worry, she won't attack you anytime soon." Raven said, whispering the last part like it was a secret. "Birdy!" The robot holding the plate to the vent chirped and put it down on the table across from Raven. "Sit, sit!" She waved at the pillow on that side of the table and Clint hurriedly sat.

Better to sit and eat rather then her decide to take the food away.

He took a bite and almost moaned. It was freaking delicious. He quickly ate some more. They ate in a comfortable silence.

"So, how was saving the world?" Raven asked. Clint laughed.

She had sounded so much like a mom asking how school was.

"Fun. I learned a lot." Clint said. Raven quirked a smile. "So, I got to ask. How did you know I was passing by?"

"What? Oh, Birdy does that all day. It's a hobby." Raven said. Clint paused and she laughed. "I'm kidding. I Saw it." She gestured to her head. He nodded slowly.

That was another thing.

"Do you see everything? Like, do you know what the lottery numbers are going to be for the seven million dollar ticket? 'Cause if you do I would really love to have those numbers. SHIELD is great and all, but a private island would be so much cooler."

Raven shook her head and ate more of her lunch. "I See what I do. Nothing too specific like that." Clint slumped.

"Oh. Hey, don't you have a Nurse? Nurse California or something?" As soon as he asked it he felt like kicking himself. It was just so easy to forget that she needed a nurse, that as soon as he had remembered it, he blurted it out. Now she would get mad, kick him out, and have Birdy hold the plate by the lab or target room for someone else.

Instead Raven laughed, Laeth wagging her tail as if she was amused too. "Nurse Cali is busy. She's having a baby. It's a boy, but don't tell her. She doesn't want to know. He's going to be beautiful, though; and successful. He's going to be president of the US for a while and be well liked." She took a sip of water as Clint stared.

Knowing that would be amazing. And creepy. And kind of annoying too.

Yeah, mostly annoying.

"Do you ever get tired of seeing all of that?" Clint asked. If she wasn't offended already she wasn't going to be.

"All the time." Raven said. "Don't forget your coat tomorrow. It'll be cold and you don't want to get sick." Yeah, she was definitely an undercover mom. He told her as such and she grinned. "The Avengers are my babies, yes? I would say children, but you are all too troublesome for anything other than babies."

"So-," Clint was about to ask something else, but Tony's voice interrupted.

"Alright. I leave for five days and you switch to Clint. I feel used." Tony said. He walked into the room, greeting by the hulk-sized Leath wagging happily. "See, Leath still loves me. I'm getting her some more treats. Bacon ones. Super sized." Laeth's tail was racing.

Raven only tilted her head, smiling. "Go take a shower and you can have some lunch. Or maybe dinner, you'll fall asleep probably. Coffee does not rest make." Tony laughed and leaned down to kiss her cheek. "Go, on."

She swatted his leg and he headed out of the room, to where Clint assumed was a shower.

Clint looked back at his plate to see that all of it was eaten.

He did not pout. Nope. You can prove nothing.

"Aw, honey." Raven said. "I have some extra for you to take back if you want to. You can take some brownies, too." She stood up, Leath bounding back to balance her. "Thanks, lovely." Raven went to the cupboard and grabbed two containers, piling food into them in generous amounts. Then she went to the plate of brownies and put over half of them on another container.

She grabbed a bag and put the containers in them, throwing in a napkin wrapped fork. "Enjoy, Arrow." She handed him the bag. He stared at her before lunging forward and hugging her.

"Best Mom ever!" He said. He then froze when he realized he was touching her but she just laughed.

"You are too funny, Arrow." She backed up and saw his expression, looking puzzled before realizing why he looked so upset and smiling almost fondly. "It only hurts me when I'm not expecting it. With you Avengers I always expect it. Besides, I danced with you, remember? I got used to you then." She said. She patted his cheek and he backed up, moving through the vent with his bag of food.

"Bye, Mamma Raven." He saluted her. She laughed and waved back.

"Bye. Come back soon, okay?"

He promised he would, then moved to his floor. He hoped that the smell didn't drag Thor or Natasha into his room for food.

This was his.

He promised to do whatever he had to keep her cooking.

* * *

 

**Bruce**

 

No one really visited his lab. Not anymore.

It wasn't that they weren't welcome, but that most people didn't want to surprise him enough that the Hulk paid a visit. He didn't mind that. Really, he didn't.

The thing that he had long learned about the Tony and Raven was that they never did what most people did. So, of course they visited his lab. In fact, they did so as often as possible. Bruce was fairly certain that they did so to make sure that he knew that he was remembered down in the pits of the lab.

Raven usually brought food to both Tony and Bruce, popping in to both of their separate labs when she did so. She would stay for a bit, usually helping him by handing tools as she watched.

"Hey, Green." Raven called. She stepped through the door and Bruce looked up to see that she was carrying the usual bag of sandwiches. "Congratulations! You have beaten Tony in how long you can go between visits upstairs. He broke and quit an hour ago." Bruce bit back a smile, already figuring out what to do with the money he got from winning that bet. Really, Clint should have known better. "You can collect your winnings."

Bruce blinked. He didn't know that the bet was known. Then again, it was Raven; she knew everything.

She perched on the stool that he had placed for visitors (her). She twirled slightly, watching as he ran some more numbers. Hulk was happy again just as he usually was around her. It made it easier to work with a happy Hulk.

"Can you hand me that tablet?" Bruce asked, pointing. She handed it over. "Thanks. So, what are you going upstairs today?"

"Nothing much. I did some painting, online shopping for the Yule. Laeth and I walked around the gym a bit. Spider is getting better at the twirl." Raven reported. Bruce snorted. Natasha always got mad when someone other then Raven called her complex kick-stab-flip-stab routine a "twirl". "Lord Prince's addicted to another soap opera, this one is about a hospital. It's kind of good. Don't tell Tony, but Arrow was watching form the ceiling." She hummed lightly and handed him a blowtorch before he could ask for it. She suddenly froze, seizing as her head rolled across her shoulders.

"Stop it!" She cried. Bruce froze, hand paused to press the button on the side of the desk incase Tony needed to come in. Only Tony could calm her when she was upset. She was staring straight at him, eyes wide and completely unfocused now. "Fighting him will make you weaker. Continuing will be your downfall." Bruce put the tablet down.

He inched forward, hand closer to the button. "Raven? Raven, who is fighting who?" She glared at him, almost snarling.

"You are fighting Hulk. Green, you are only part of a whole. The other part is being denied instead of embraced." Raven scolded him. She frowned and pulled him away, touching his sleeve instead touching skin. "A divided man will be torn apart."

She pulled him to the floor, forcing him to sit and she sat across from her. She grabbed a sandwich and handed it to him. He longing thought of the button and wished he had pushed it. Now he would just have to rely on Jarvis to call Tony if there was a problem.

He took a bite of the sandwich at her pointed look. Raven smiled. "Close your eyes." She commanded. He put the sandwich down and did as she asked. "Good, now imagine yourself as a white circle." He cracked an eye open but she was serious. He imagined a white circle. "Put a dot of green in it, just a dot." He did so. "Channel Hulk."

Bruce opened his eyes and scooted back. "Hulk tends not to play nice with others." She narrowed her eyes at him, but got up and grabbed the largest tranquilizer gun she could find. She sat back down, holding it.

"Better? Now sit down and channel Hulk." She commanded. He did, allowing Hulk's simple thoughts to take over. Hulk happily came out, but Bruce stayed in his form. "Hulk?"

Hulk looked up and smiled awkwardly through Bruce's face. "Hey, buddy. Can you close your eyes?" He did so happily, crazy girl was nice to him even when Bruce got angry. "Do you see the circle?" Hulk nodded. "I need you to mix the green throughout the white, okay?" Hulk nodded and slowly did as she asked.

As he did, Bruce grew more and more aware. Finally he was in control again. He looked around, confused. "What happened?" He felt completely at peace, for once not angry at anyone.

"You are complete, Green." Raven said. "Hulk is happy since he is aware, and that makes you at peace. You are stronger now. You are now yourself. Do again to continue this and you shall be strong." She froze and twitching again slightly, and she grabbed her side as she slumped slightly. "Sorry. I have to go. Tony… Tony is about to need me. Not sure he knows it yet." She quickly got up and walked to the door, pausing slightly to point to the food. "Eat something; and come up stairs eventually. We worry when you hide down here. Spandex was talking about kidnapping you for your own good."

She walked out and Bruce was left thanking the plate of sandwiches.

He promised to pay her back somehow.

* * *

 

**Steve**

 

Steve didn't expect anyone to be awake at two in the morning. At least, no one awake in the kitchen.

Yet, there Raven was. She had either just woken up or was about to go to bed, her hair carefully braided and a white nightgown barely covering her thighs covered by a robe. She turned when Steve walked in and smiled vaguely at him.

He didn't know what is was about her, but she had something that scared him. Her expressions reminded him of some of the wives of soldiers that hadn't come back from the war. It made him want to run away and make them smile at the same time.

The others either didn't notice or weren't bothered by it. They had accepted her easily, and that somehow made it worse when he wanted to run.

"Morning, Spandex." She greeted. She motioned to the coffee maker. "Tony's up." She explained through a yawn.

He hated that nickname. He didn't choose the suit.

"Why doesn't he get his own coffee? Why make you get it?" Steve asked. Raven narrowed her eyes considering.

"Spandex, I am only saying this once. Tony does not  _make_  me do anything. He can try, but he'll be sorry in the end. The time before had women differently, women were objects not people. Welcome to the future. I am getting his coffee since he is trying to do the same with an empty bag and is too tired to realize. Your view of Tony is tinting the looking glass of reality." She snapped.

Steve took a step back before gathering himself. He had never heard her snap at anyone, or sound faintly annoyed for that matter.

"Stark is a-," he started but Raven interrupted again, waving a wooden spoon at him.

"You chose this; this life, this job. For Tony he discovered it by being attacked with his own weapon. You came out of a bottle and a hope in a war. He came out of a cave and a prayer. You are the public's leader of your team, you tell news. Tony is your landlord, weapons supplier, public figure, and food supplier. If this was in my time, you would be the owl to Tony's Noble and Ancient House." She said.

Steve had no idea what she was saying but he didn't dare interrupt her. She was scary annoyed and her eyes kept flashing clear and angry. Finally she sighed and seemed to realize she was waving the spoon.

"Yet this is not my time, and it is not your time either, is it? Time has cheated me and betrayed you, has it not?" She twitched slightly and gripped the counter. "You will find the dead man flying in a bus." She offered. He shifted back.

"What?"

She shook her head. "Sorry, it is not time to meet him. He is still a blank puzzle, waiting to be drawn." Raven tilted her head and stared at him for many long moments. "Tell me, Spandex, what do you think of Howard Stark?"

Steve smiled fondly at the memories of Howard from the war. "He was a good man. He always helped others, willing to do anything for the other guy. Howard was a genius, too. He was able to make impossible weapons and tools to use in the war, never cracking under the pressures of expectations. Shame his son…," he trailed off.

Raven gave a sharp laugh. Steve winced, it almost sounded cruel. "Howard was a drunk."

"It was a war. Everyone needed an outlet." Steve defended.

"He slept with everyone."

"He was young."

"He didn't stop after marrying Tony's momma and getting married."

"Everyone has flaws. No one is perfect."

"He was abusive."

"Memories probably got the better of him. Lots of ex-soldiers went through that after the war. You call it PTSD now, don't you? He was at the front of the war most of the time."

"He was crazy."

"That's rich." Steve snapped. Howard was a good man, why could she not see that? He had saved Steve so many times during the war. Tony should be more like him and he would be twice the man he currently was. "You are crazy. You lived in a mental asylum, for God's sake!"

Raven quirked an eyebrow. "Yes, Spandex, I am crazy. The things I have Seen have driven me this way. You can not imagine the horrors, but I can tell you that Howard did not suffer from PTSD. He never went to the front lines really, did he? He stayed in a mobile lab, safe from the fighting. The blood on his hands was only his family's. Howard was crazy. He searched for a man that was dead; that should have died many decades ago. You cheated Death, Spandex. You did the impossible. He should have thought you were dead- any sane person would have. Just because you did the impossible does not make him any less crazy."

Steve shook his head, searching for an excuse.

He couldn't think of anything.

It was true. Howard should have thought he was dead, should have moved on with his life. Steve had heard of the long legends that SHIELD had gossiped about. How Howard had searched for decades, and not given up hope when he didn't find Steve.

He should have though.

It was a fluke that had a survived, a good one but a fluke none the less.

"Is Tony?" Steve started. Raven's expression softened.

"Tony is crazy too, we all are. All of us who live in this tower. He will forgive you eventually, because that is the crazy that he is." Raven said. She grabbed the mug from under the coffee machine, inhaling the delicious smells. "Coffee smells so good for something so bitter." She said wistfully. "Never give a house elf coffee. They get too excited and clean everything in their path for hours."

The elevator doors opened before Steve could respond to that wisdom and the large wolf-creature bonded out. It barked once and sat down by the doors. Raven rolled her eyes at it, but turned none the less to give Steve a wave.

"Goodbye, Captain." She said.

Steve stared at her in shock. "What happened to Spandex? Not that I really want to go back to that." He added hurriedly. She laughed.

"You finally let go of Howard. Weighing a child by the parent's scale will never work. A scale is each persons, it can not be shared." She advised. "Captain."

Steve promised to be worth the title.

* * *

 

**Natasha**

 

"Bye, Raven." Tony kissed Raven before flipping down the metal screen to cover his face.

"Goodbye, Iron Man." Raven chirped. The Avengers left, this time no one trying to convince her that Iron Man and Tony were the same person. It only took too long and the crisis usually got worse in that time. Raven turned and smiled at Natasha. "What are you doing today, then?" She asked. Natasha shrugged, moodily.

She had been benched after she broke her leg, the cast being signed by everyone before she woke up. Pepper and Darcy had somehow joined together and drawn some creature that they insisted was a unicorn but somehow breathed fire. Raven had drawn a bird, lion thing that she claimed hippogriffs really looked like. The pen was taken away before Jane could draw what Thor was describing.

She hated sitting out.

"Jarvis, call Pepper." Raven said.

"What shall I tell her?" Jarvis asked.

"Tell her that Tony is gone and Spider is lonely." Raven said. Natasha moved to protest but Raven help up a hand. "Don't argue Spider. You are very lonely this I am sure." She moved to the kitchen and took two sticks of butter out of the fridge.

The elevator doors opened and Pepper came in, carrying a bottle of wine. "Hello! Darcy and Jane are coming slow. Darcy bought a dress and is insisting on wearing it constantly. Jane is trying to get her into something less cheetah print." She said. Raven laughed and pulled down five wine glasses. She poured water into one and Pepper opened the wine bottle to pour liquid into the others.

"I'm not allowed to drink." Raven explained. "Nurse Cali gets upset." She tilted her head for a second. "Congratulations Pepper."

Pepper handed Natasha a glass before answering. "Thanks. What for?" Raven just gave a secret smile and started pulling out bowls and containers of sugar and dry ingredients. "So, Natasha, has Raven filled you in on what's going to happen today?" The assassin shook her head negative. "When Tony leaves too frequently Raven calls us to meet her, and we sometimes make cookies or watch a movie." Pepper glanced at the counter. "It looks like a cookie day today."

Raven nodded, grabbing the measuring cups and starting to put in ingredients. She handed Natasha a scrap of paper with precise amounts of ingredients and directions.

"Mrs. Red gave me this recipe when I was younger, along with so many others. She gave it to all of her girls, but I had to recopy it many times. Laeth keeps it in her collar." She pointed to where the dog was sprawled on one of the many dog beds on the floor.

"How old are you?" Pepper wondered, almost to herself.

Raven answered though. "50,689. Years, stars, or blue moons I never shall know." Pepper and Natasha stared at her.

"You're that old, but with Stark?" Natasha said. Clint had told her that Raven had taken blunt things well.

Raven nodded absently, handing both Pepper and Natasha bowls to stir. "She did live in a mental hospital, some leeway has to be given." Darcy said, sashaying into the room in a tight leopard print dress, ending above the knees. "Then again, it might just be that Stark is sexy as hell. Someone get me some of that wine, it looks amazing."

Jane smacked the back of her friend's head, "Darcy, shut up. They are cute together, and you definitely do not need anymore wine. You drank like almost half a bottle at the apartment before you left." Darcy rolled her eyes and poured both Jane and herself a glass, taking a long sip.

"I will have you know that you drank half the bottle. You blabbed to the taxi man about dating Thor." She accused back. Jane blushed slightly before shrugging.

"More wine for all!" Raven said, waving her water glass in the air. Natasha took a long sip.

…-…-…-…

When the rest of the team got back later, they stopped in shock.

Jane was passed out on the couch, snoring at a volume rivaling her boyfriend. Pepper was singing on the coffee table, barefoot and her hair not up. Raven, Natasha, and Darcy were watching, all but Natasha rolling on the floor in laughter. Natasha was only laughing upright.

" _Used to be a baby, used to be a lady, thought you were the perfect lover!"_ Pepper belted out. Darcy grabbed an almost empty wine bottle and took a swig before handing it to Natasha who took the same.

Natasha wasn't drunk. Not at all.

" _All the harmony went falling out of key, so now I got to find another!"_  Darcy joined in. Natasha thought about joining too, but one look at her team and changed her mind. Instead she hummed along.

Natasha grabbed a cookie from the plate and threw it at Clint. "Take a cookie, Hawky." She called. Stark and Bruce did bother to hide their laughter and Clint smirked.

"You're drunk." He accused. Natasha steadied herself for a minute and shook her head.

"I am not." She said, only slurring slightly. She wondered if Fury was able to get her back in that restaurant in Prague. They had really good enchiladas. "I want enchiladas."

Clint laughed. "Yeah. I bet you do."

"Is it a requirement to be hot to be in the Avengers?" Darcy asked, her dress rising higher and making Steve blush darker. He mumbled something about a shower, to which Darcy leered, and rushed to the elevator with Bruce behind him. "I'm just saying, but all of you are hot."

"It's like a corny teen comic, basically porn. All the heroes have to be sexy in leather." Raven said, Natasha jealous over how Raven wasn't drunk. Then again, she hadn't been drinking. "All the leather and spandex. Not to mention the whole tie everyone they capture up." Tony laughed harder and came close enough to kiss her.

"I love you." He said. Raven beamed back at him.

Natasha was faintly jealous. She wanted someone to look at  _her_  like that.

She tilted the bottle back again. Then she offered it to Tony who looked tempted but Raven pulled him down and Clint took it instead, putting it down on the table away from Pepper's dancing.

She was getting fairly tired and yawned. "I'm off to bed." She said, stumbling slightly as she stood. Clint grabbed her arm as she started to fall and helped her to the elevator.

" _Goodbye, my almost lover! Goodbye, my hopeless dream!"_  Pepper wailed changing songs, holding her shoe as a microphone. Natasha waved back at her. " _I'm trying not to think about it."_  Bruce was trying to coax her off the table. Darcy was still singing to her on the floor about not taking out trash.

She was fairly certain she had passed out before she hit her floor. Clint had told her it was okay, though, and she trusted him.

…-…-…

Natasha stumbled down to breakfast the next morning, clutching her head.

"How the hell did I get drunk last night?" Natasha managed to whisper when she saw the other girls from the night before in the same condition, besides a happily sober Raven.

Pepper winced and pointed to where the wine bottle sat. "Firewhiskey. Raven makes and sells it. 'Mrs. Red' gave that recipe too her as well. Apparently it ran in her family. The stuff is way stronger than any other drink." Natasha wondered why Tony didn't drink it, but Raven answered in her all knowing way.

"Tony is not allowed any. Getting addicted to the stuff is too easy when you want to get drunk." Raven said. Natasha noticed she seemed to be speaking rom experience, but she didn't say anything. The other girls were too hung over to notice.

"Asha," Darcy slurred, still looking slightly drunk. "Pass the aspirin." Natasha skid the container over, everyone wincing as it screeched slightly. "Shh!"

Natasha realized that she had actually had fun and made friends.

Natasha promised to repay Raven.

* * *


End file.
